Realm of Power

The golden sunshine slowly penetrated the clouds, bathing the earth in the vibrant sunshine. The siege of Geralance continued until the afternoon. After defeating the counterattack attempted in the city, both sides entered a rare period of calm. ,

The weeds stretched themselves comfortably in the morning breeze, while the unknown wild flowers greedily absorbed the sunshine, air and moisture under the sunlight, allowing themselves to grow tall and strong, able to see high and stay in this world. Time adds up to a long time

On the right wall of the nearly ruined city of Geralance, the black smoke rising in the air looked very abrupt and out of place. The entire city wall was littered with scattered stones and rubble.

The burnt blackened city wall was a mess, with charred corpses everywhere. After a continuous morning of devastation, the small town of Geralance had completely lost its former majesty standing tall in the mountains. Only the burning ruins remain

The originally 5-meter-high city wall was neatly divided into two sections, black and white. Fortunately, the remaining half of the city wall was burnt black by the smoke caused by the violent burning of incendiary bombs. Under the base of the wall, there was still a raging fire. Burn, emitting thick black smoke

The arrow towers on the city wall are the key targets. Whether it is the watchtowers protruding at the four corners of the city or the more than ten temporary arrow towers, they were all collapsed and smashed by several rounds of bombardment, leaving no trace of their original appearance. Only a few stone foundations remain on the round outline of a pile of stones, which seems to indicate that a solid arrow tower once existed here.

Those that protrude from the ground are easy to identify, and those areas hidden in the city roads behind the battlements are not considered strong soldier hiding caves. They are the hardest hit areas in this continuous explosion and burning catastrophe, which caused heavy casualties to the Nords. ,

The scorching flames can be avoided by relying on the hidden soldier cave, but the suffocating smoke, in this era that does not know what chemical weapons are at all, is incalculable in its lethality to a large number of soldiers crowded in a narrow closed area, bringing The toxic smoke and the thin air caused by burning caused a large number of Nord soldiers to be suffocated to death in the hidden soldier cave.

Especially those hidden soldier caves near the outermost part of the city wall can no longer be called hidden soldier caves. When the Nords who came to rescue arrived, they found that there were so many Nord soldiers who died of suffocation and poisoning that they were almost hugging each other. They died together in groups, it was terrible to see

The battle damage situation in front of him made Crimson Suo feel completely desperate. However, in just half a day of attack, half of the 40,000 defenders were lost. The piles of corpses were piled up layer by layer in the place where the corpses were buried, which made people afraid. The logistics personnel responsible for cleaning up the battlefield were also frightened by the mountains of white corpses. They were not willing to bury these corpses until they tripled the price.

The worst thing is the wounded who were burned by the flames. In this era of lack of medical knowledge, on a battlefield overwhelmed by heavy troops and facing a desperate situation,

A large number of wounded soldiers could not receive proper treatment at all. Commander Rode placed them casually in the open field without any medical measures, not even medical staff.

Everyone was exposed to the brutal scorching sun. The Nords believed that this could reduce the chance of wound infection. There were flies flying everywhere, and the wounds gave off an unpleasant smell. Some wounded soldiers had their hands chopped off, This is the usual way for Nords to treat arrow wounds. They are still moaning before they die, making people afraid to come close.

Even the Nord soldiers who once regarded death as home are not used to being injured. They have almost no treatment conditions. They are not equipped to deal with the retreat of battle damage. They can only passively watch them die of fear. Now they are facing The war is really two different things from the wars they faced before.

"Sir, the enemy's offensive is too fierce. If we don't take the opportunity to evacuate now, everyone will die here." Some Nord officers gathered around Crimson Suo.

"What? Are you afraid?" Crimson Suo's face was gloomy as if water was dripping. The Falcon Army's fierce attack was completely overwhelming. Not only did most Nord soldiers believe that as long as the other party is willing, today, the Falcon Army can cross the city wall of Geralance. Even Nord officers who are not in the middle or upper class sadly agree with this view.

But if the general does not evacuate, no one dares to evacuate in advance, otherwise they will be executed even if they can return alive.

"You have disappointed me so much. The Nord soldiers who once prided themselves on not fearing death have now learned to be afraid of death." He glanced gloomily at the Nord officers in front of him. Those who were caught by his gaze lowered their heads one after another. Don't dare to look at him

"Is it your duty, General Crimson, to let everyone die in vain here?"

A burly middle-aged general walked in from the main entrance with the support of several guards. His sad and angry face was completely filled with blood, as if he had just been pulled out of a corpse. From the moment the middle-aged general entered, For a moment, everyone's eyes turned to him, and the officers involuntarily caused a commotion.

"Master Mandy"

The officers all stood up, saluted the general, and took the initiative to make way for him.

He is the only one among these officers who has the same military rank as Crimson Cable. He is the commander of the Second Army Mandy, who just lost most of his troops on the southern wall defense line, and the deputy commander of the Geralance defense line. This assembly Of the 40,000 Nord troops in Geralance, 25,000 of them belong to the Second Local Army. Most of the people making trouble here are officers of the Second Local Army.

"Sir Mandy, I'm sorry for the loss of the south wall defense line." Sensing the other party's unkind gaze, Crimson Suo also bowed politely and said with a serious expression, "This loss will have a profound impact on the local Second Army." Said, it is indeed an extremely heavy blow, but I can guarantee that as long as the Falcon Army can be repelled in one fell swoop in this battle, the Second Army will definitely shock the mainland and those dead soldiers will be able to shine with glory. "

"Megatron Continent? Is General Crimson amusing us?" Mandy stared at Crimson Suo with fiery eyes and suddenly stretched out her finger, pointing at all the officers in front of her, and said loudly and in a sad and angry tone.

"Lord Crimson, please look carefully and see clearly that what is standing in front of you is not a well-equipped first-level legion, nor a battle-hardened elite of the kingdom, nor General Crimson's elite guards in Kyoto, they are just some worthless people. None. They don’t even have enough to eat when they’re not fighting. They’re used as cannon fodder by the local army when they’re fighting.

But we are also warriors, and we still have the blood of the Nords in our blood. So even if we face the continent's best general, the Falcon Army, which has never been defeated, we will not hesitate the first time we receive the order. We decided to head here. Even though we knew that we might never come back, we still came because we knew that behind Geralance was the Kyoto of the Kingdom, and we had become the last barrier of the Kingdom."

Mandy's bloodshot eyes were full of tears, and Yingying's voice stopped, and then she said, "But everyone has seen what happened today. We are not on the same level as the Falcon Army. Defeating the Falcon Army can threaten us." It's not funny at all to tell a joke like Earthquake. 20,000 people. A total of 20,000 Nordic young people just disappeared. They were fighting with the belief that they would die, but they didn't run away. They were fighting, even if they died. I didn’t evacuate from the south wall either.”

Do you know where the blood on my body comes from? This is the blood of those 20,000 soldiers. Do you know how I feel when I watch them being buried in the soil one by one?

I personally moved one hundred and ten corpses. I couldn't distinguish their names, but I could feel their anger. Did you hear the whistling wind outside? It was the souls of 20,000 soldiers angry in my ears. The accusation was that it was because of your miscalculation and command that they died so miserably."

"It is inevitable that there will be casualties in the war. Lord Mandy belittles himself like this, which is not good for our military morale. But seeing that Lord Mandy is so emotional, I will not pursue it. But I don't want to, and I heard other people say this too. words"

Crimson Suo looked at Mandy with a serious face, and then glanced at the officers with red eyes behind him. He is a man who speaks his truth and is also famous for being serious in Nord Kyoto, but he forgot that this is not Nord Kyoto. It's not like he was in the Nord Guards. Here, he seemed so alone, his lonely figure was like a shadow blown by the wind on the wall.

General Mandy turned around with a rosy face and asked reluctantly, "The general hasn't answered me yet. Is it our duty as Nord generals to let everyone wait here to die and become cannon fodder under the scorched earth tactics of the Falcon Army?" Responsibility? Or do you think we haven’t killed enough people, and you have to make sure everyone dies cleanly?”

"Mandy, pay attention to your words. You are shaking the morale of the military. It is our duty to hold on. As soldiers, even if we all die here, we must defend Geralance." Crimson Suo punched the table angrily. , for Mandy calling her by her first name, even the most basic honorifics were omitted. For a high-ranking nobleman who has strict requirements for himself, such a situation is simply unimaginable.

"Really? It turns out that Master Crimson's persistent tactics are to let everyone die here." A sneer appeared on Mandy's lips. He had long known that even if he stepped forward, the cold Crimson Suo would never waver, so he was prepared. , he waved his hand and shouted an order to the door, "If Master Crimson is still so stubborn, my subordinates will only offend someone. Please come with us, General Crimson."

"Bang bang!" More than a dozen fully armed officers suddenly rushed in from the front of the hall. They were wearing heavy armor and had thick shields in their hands. At first glance, they looked like they were preparing for an ambush.

"Mandy, do you want to rebel?" Crimson Suo asked loudly. He pulled out the sword from his waist with a clang and protected his body. The officers around him retreated one after another. Most of them had expressions on their faces. Dazed, they are forcing Crimson Cord, but no one is bold enough to rebel and kidnap Crimson Cord.

"Rebellion? No, I am executing the order of the Ministry of Military Affairs." Mandy looked at Crimson Suo with a cold face, slowly took out an order from the Ministry of Military Affairs from her arms, and threw it to Crimson Cable with a snap. on the table

"If you don't believe it, just take a look. Don't think that the Ministry of Military Affairs will trust you so much. It's true that the Crimson family is a century-old family, and it's true that it is the family that His Majesty relies on the most. However, the Ministry of Military Affairs has received information that your second brother, Crimson Erduo, The general has surrendered to the Falcon Dynasty. Your third sister, the commander of the Crimson Rui Army, is currently stranded in the three northern counties and has not returned. The Ministry of Military Affairs has sufficient evidence to prove that the commander of the Crimson Rui Army once had contact with the top brass of the Falcon Dynasty."

Mandy sneered and said with a mocking look on her face, "The Crimson family with three generals has betrayed the second one. How could His Majesty still trust the Crimson family so much? He handed over such an important city of Geralance to you, just in the hope that Let me test you. I didn’t expect you to be so impatient. In just half a day, you exposed your sinister intention to annihilate all 40,000 troops. If you don’t stop this traitor at this time, then it will really happen. I'm ashamed of your majesty's trust."

"You're talking nonsense, you're slandering"

Crimson Suo's face turned pale. He looked at the order book on the table with trembling eyes. He stretched out his hand several times but failed to pick it up. It was as if invisible flames were burning, and bursts of stinging pain came from his heart. The Crimson Family A hundred years of glory, an unparalleled three generals, what a glory it is in the entire Nordic Kingdom

Making the Crimson family the number one sect in Nord is the belief that Crimson Suo insists on as the eldest son of the family. If it is true as Mandy said, her second brother has really rebelled, and the third sister Crimson Rui, who has always been stubborn, It is true that due to unknown reasons, he has not returned to Nord for half a year. It is really difficult not to feel oppressive urgency with all the things in front of him.

"I'm sorry, Lord Crimson." Mandy said politely, but slowly pulled out the long sword from her waist. She didn't even look at the officers surrounding Crimson Rope with a smile on her face, and shouted at the top of her lungs.

"Why are you all so scared? If you haven't captured this traitor yet, do you really want this traitor to continue to command you and then all die here?"

Crimson Suo raised his head, glanced at the hesitating officers, and said two words from between his teeth in a cold tone: "If you really want to believe Mandy's lies, then you can come, I won't blame you. Yes, but I still say the same thing, only by holding on to Geralance can we have hope, otherwise, we will be the sinners of the kingdom."

"Sir, you have served your country all your life. We all respect you, but if you still don't change your mind, then... we have no choice but to offend you." Some Nord officers lowered their heads with ugly expressions, but still pulled out their swords from their waists. They looked at each other silently, their eyes slicing in the air like knives. No one said anything. Everyone knew very well that at this point, it was impossible to continue to be perfunctory and polite.

Knowing that there was no room for turning around, Crimson Suo raised the sword in his hand with a solemn expression and said, "You are not the vassals of my Crimson family, nor are you my subordinates. There is no need to mention the word subordinate again. I have said what needs to be said, and I hope you will take care of yourself."

"Come on, take it!" Mandy shouted with a ferocious face, and quickly jumped back a few steps, trying to hide out of the attack range of Crimson Rope's long sword.

"Do you want to leave, it's too late?" Crimson Suo shouted, and the long sword in his hand turned into countless lights and shadows and suddenly stabbed out. Although Mandy had been prepared, she still felt that the air in front of her was suffocating, and a heavy and solid sound was The momentum rushed towards me, and Crimson Suo, who drew out his long sword, rushed forward like a ferocious beast.

"Bang bang" the two Nord officers who were standing in the middle flew backwards covered in blood.

"Stop him!" Mandy yelled in panic. He didn't expect Crimson Suo to be so terrifying. Although he was only a local army commander, he also knew that the Crimson family was one of the most powerful military general families among traditional martial arts. The Crimson Erduo mentioned just now Both Crimson Suo and Crimson Rui are extremely powerful generals. Crimson Suo is a member of the Crimson family. His eldest son is also an extremely brave general. Otherwise, he would not have been appointed as the head of the Kyoto City Guards. However, his estimation was still wrong. The two officers who flew out just now were both wearing heavy armor. , the total weight of his body weighed over 200 kilograms, and he was beaten away in such a short period of time. It’s hard to believe that Crimson Suo’s martial arts skills are so high.

"Bang" another officer flew backwards, and then Mandy felt that the sword shadows were like a rainstorm in front of him. He tried his best to hold up his body, and he blocked in a panic with rapid breathing, and was overwhelmed by the heavy pressure. Keep going back, back, and back again,

Not only him, but several other officers who came to the rescue were also retreating. The terrifying tiger-like pressure on Crimson Suo made them stagger backwards involuntarily.

According to legend, Scarlet Ansidian, the first knight of the founding monarch of Nord, was a fierce general who could defeat hundreds of people. Diman used to only think that it was a legend, but now, he feels that Scarlet is far away from the Scarlet of the past. I'm afraid the founder of the family is not much different.

"Kill him..." Mandy's voice was trembling. He made a gesture, and several officers raised their bows and arrows, pointing at the crimson rope.

"Mandy, you sinner"

The sharp sword illuminates people's eyes, and the overwhelming murderous aura is approaching. Crimson Suo's majestic figure is like a god descending from the earth, forcibly breaking through the obstacles of the officers, and the long sword pursues Mandy closely. He knows , as long as they can die together with Mandy, these officers have only one way to defend Geralance,

"shoot arrows"

"don't want"

Two calls sounded at the same time. Amidst the sharp howling of the wind, the figure swayed, and the dull echo of the arrow piercing the flesh was heard. At the moment when Crimson Suo's long sword was about to pierce Mandy's throat, several arrow clusters hit her. his back He groaned, and his body suddenly slowed down. He took a heavy breath, looked down, and was surprised to see the rapidly expanding red color in his chest. At this time, the burning pain spread from the wound to his brain.

"Are you going to die?"

Crimson Suo frowned calmly and looked at the wound. As if he was looking at something that had nothing to do with him, he stood up straight and picked up the sword on the ground.

At this time, Mandy's trembling command came again, "Shoot and kill him."

The rain of arrows poured towards the man again, and the powerful crossbow arrows penetrated his warm body, and hit the wall behind him with the blood spurting out. The somewhat thin figure of the scarlet rope shook a few times, but finally stood firm.

Watching the bright red blood splashing on the ground, the strength disappeared from the body bit by bit. The arms that were once full of strength could not even hold the sword in his hand.

"I'm so tired." Scarlet rope raised his head, tried to open his eyelids, and took a last look at the ground in front of him, (to be continued)